Before the Salt
by JHLZ.NTL
Summary: feat. Toph x Satoru and Mai x Zuko
1. Prologue

**cover photo by lovelyrugbee on Tumblr**

* * *

The day began like any other, mechanist woke up first to an alarm set for five in the morning. He bathed, started a kettle of water, made his side of the bed, combed his hair over then brought tea to his lady who just happened to be…

 _ **RING!**_

"Chief Beifong… Spirits fuck it all, I'll be right in," the Esteemed Chief of Police of Republic City grumbled, slamming the telephone back into it's cradle, crushing the entire thing with her metalbending in irritation.

"That's the sixth phone we've gone through this month, Toph," the mechanist said bringing his wife some tea.

"Sorry, Satoru. I've—I have no excuse. I just haven't been feeling quite right lately," the Chief replied brushing her scraggly hair out of her face.

"Is there anything I can help with?" he asked sitting beside her.

"Would you mind helping me on with my uniform. My bending has been a little off lately. Nearly knocked myself over the yesterday trying to bend the damn thing on," she mumbled.

"Sure thing," Satoru replied, crossing to pick up the pieces of his wife's metalbending uniform which lay in a mangled heap. He picked the chest plate up with a grunt and brought it over to the bed. Toph kicked her feet over and planted them firmly into the ground with a sigh of relief as her sight returned to her body. She leaned over and opened a drawer and pulled out a pair of grey pants and from another drawer, a green skirt and stood up, pulling them over her underwear. She removed her tank top as Satoru handed her a strip of white fabric to bind her chest. The Chief pulled on a clean tank top and then lifted her arms so that her husband could drape the armor over her head and secure the concealed clasps that ran up both sides.

"I wouldn't ordinarily say something like this, but does it feel tighter at all?" Satoru asked, snapping the last clasp shut

"Are you calling me fat?" Toph asked, scrunching her face up in curiosity.

"Not at all!" he responded quickly. "You could be gaining muscle mass. I only meant that… never mind," Satoru replied, shaking his head, reaching for her metal shin guards and propping them up in front of her legs. She slipped one foot in effortlessly then lifted the other and banged her toe on the upper rim.

"OW! FUCK THE SPIRITS! WHY DOES EVERYTHING HAVE TO BE SO FUCKING BLURRY?!" Toph cursed, grasping her foot, falling back on the bed, seething with pain.

"Blurry?" Satoru asked, worry lacing his tone.

"Maybe I just need to drink more water," Toph suggested.

"Maybe you need to take a day off from work," Satoru suggested. She shot him a familiar look of "no way, no how" and turned away. "Toph, please at least hear me out. You need your sight to be as accurate as it has been your whole life to be able to protect your officers and the rest of the city. If you slip because you can't see, it could cost lives. The Dark One is a good deputy. He can cover for you for a day just fine and the city will still be standing. You need to find out what has been happening with your bending."

Toph sat up, still clutching her foot. "Fine!" She growled picking up the mangled phone.

"Hey Moochee, you gotta cover for me today. Not feeling well. Don't give anybody any reason," Toph ordered her deputy.

"Aye aye, Chief. Hope you feel better soon," her deputy responded over the phone.

"Yeah, me too, kid," Toph grumbled in response, hanging up. She felt Satoru's face curl into a smile. "What ju grinning about?"

"That you call the Dark One, kid even though he is four years older than you."

"Eh, but I outrank him," Toph replied, yanking the clasps of her uniform open again to change into something a bit lighter and easier to move in.

"Will you be okay on your own?" Satoru asked as they exited their home in Republic City.

"Thing's may be a little blurry, but I can still see alright," Toph replied. "Don't worry about me. If you chuck a big rock, you eliminate the need for accuracy."

"Be careful today, Love," Satoru reminded her, kissing her on the cheek.

"I will," Toph replied heading for the hospital.

* * *

That evening, he returned home to find his wife completely intact, sitting at the kitchen table with her fingers intertwined around a cup of ginger tea. "How did it go?" he asked, turning on the lights that she never needed when she was home alone.

"Fine," she replied brusquely. "Satoru?"

"Yes, my lovely badgermole?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and kissing her forehead before going to set down his brief case in his study.

"I wanted to ask you, if you don't mind, how is the company doing? And our… finances?" Toph asked.

"Just fine?" Satoru asked, surprised by the sudden randomness of the question. The company was thriving. The multi-national conglomerate managed the mining and refinement of crystal, iron and carbon and produced nearly all of the world's steel.

"Are you sure?"

"Toph, I would never lie to you, besides. You can read my heartbeat, right? Everything is fine."

"In that case, I was wondering if we could take a trip, a long one if possible,"

"What kind of trip? Like a vacation?"

"Of sorts. You can still work if you want to, but I won't be and I won't make you stay with me," Toph replied.

"Does it have to do with your vision going?" Satoru asked.

"Yeah. That among other things," Toph replied. Satoru decided not to press more on her degrading earthbending. If it were really something to worry about, Toph would have made it very clear to him and everybody else around her.

"Where would you like the trip to be?"

"Gaoling. I—" Toph paused. "I want to see my parents. Well not 'see' persay but you know what I mean," Toph began to say nervously.

"We can do that. I'll see about transportation tomorrow morning. Do you expect they will invite you to stay with them or…"

"Ideally, I'd like a place of our own down there, one we can come back to just in case… the triads come after us again…" Toph replied.

"I can have a secretary start looking into property listings in Gaoling tomorrow morning. Do you want an apartment, a mansion, or a plot of land where you can earthbend your own dwelling?"

"Hm… a plot of land to earthbend my own dwelling…" Toph thought pensively. "That sounds very tempting, but by the time I get down there, I may be too tired to even bend my belt buckle, let alone a building."

"That is new. I didn't think such a thing was even possible for the greatest earthbender in the world," Satoru replied, stroking her cheek and neck.

"Me neither. Then again, it's not the only thing that's new," Toph said, taking his hands in hers and sliding them down the front of her body before bringing them to rest on her lower abdomen, breathing slowly. "I was in denial at first, frightened by it, but now… it's almost comforting in a world where I can see nothing else."

Satoru's eyes widened. Her lower belly was firmer than he remembered it, but completely unlike when she flexed her abdominals. And it was smooth. He could feel some slight movement, some shift in weight inside of her and he started crying.

"You mean…" Satoru fell speechless. "No! Tell me it's a body suit that you use for undercover work! It MUST be!" Satory yelled in disbelief, yanking her shirt up over her head.

"Satoru!" Toph shrieked, flailing her arms blindly at him.

"Tell me you're lying!" he yelled, picking her up out of her chair while she laughed at the change in atmosphere. He laid her down on the couch and lifted her shirt carefully and lowered her waistband and placed his hands on the small mound forming on her lower abdomen.

"Are you crying?" Toph asked, groping the air blindly for her husband's wavy hair.

"Because I am happy!" Satoru replied, holding his warm hands on her cool, pale belly. "Have you told anyone else—"

"Before you? What kind of wife would do such a thing? I may be mean, but I am not cruel, not to you, at least," Toph replied affectionately.

"And will you tell anyone? Your deputy? Katara? Aang? Sokka? If not, may I?" Satoru asked.

Toph took a deep breath and sighed.

"I am sorry," Toph said quietly. "I know how happy you must be, and I am too, but I am worried both for my safety, and his. You know how the triads can be. They're constantly searching to find and exploit a new vulnerability of mine."

"I know. I have the scars on my wrists and back as a reminder of their brutality," Satoru replied, becoming sadder.

"I could not possibly put my unborn child at that risk. I will not. If the triads found out that I was pregnant and that I couldn't even use my seismic sense, it would only be too easy for them to get rid of both of us or make a move against the police or even the City. It is another reason why I would like a home base in Gaoling. It is far enough out of reach of the bending triads, and strategically located in the mountains, away from all the chaos of the rest of the Kingdom. It's location even enabled it to be left untouched by the Hundred Year War. I haven't ever seen a map, but I know it is at least three days away by Appa flying, so hopefully it is far enough out of reach to keep our child safe until he can protect himself, or at least long enough to get help." Toph explained.

"He will be safe. I promise," Satoru told his wife soundly.

"We will have to leave the City soon, though."

"Because you'll start showing?"

"No, I don't care about showing. I am worried primarily about my bending. Earlier you mentioned my lie-detector. That was the first of my skills to be eliminated during this pregnancy. It went months ago."

"Why didn't you say anything? Wasn't that scary- to lose such a major part of you?"

"A bit, but at the same time, there was this little second heartbeat that took its place. It made me feel still complete and ... okay for some reason. It is only a matter of time that my reflexes slow and my bending fades completely."

"Is that normal for a bender to lose so much control during pregnancy?" Satoru asked.

"I am not sure, but for some reason, with this tiny presence, I still feel safe," Toph replied with a hand on her lower belly.

* * *

Three weeks later, Republic City's Esteemed Chief of Police gave her leave of absence and then set off for Gaoling with her husband on a whole new journey. They took three trains and then a carriage to get to the wealthy, but somewhat remote city located in a strategic mountain range that left it relatively untouched by the Hundred Year War. In the unfamiliar terrain and only vaguely familiar city, Toph needed Satoru's physical assistance and guidance as anything further than ten feet away had already gone completely blurry.

They came to the great gates of a large estate in a rather upscale neighborhood of the city. "Here we are! Home sweet home for the next few months!" Satoru announced as two earthbending guards swung open the gate while two firebending guards stood on the wall above in watch towers. "It has over twelve acres, and a stable in case you want to start raising ostrich horses or keep pig chickens or something else you can hold on to until the baby arrives. It is all brand new, completely furnished, and staffed, so you won't have to lift a finger if you don't want to!" Satoru exclaimed proudly.

"It is wonderful, Satoru! Thank you," Toph said, weary from their travels, collapsing on the closest thing that felt remotely like a sofa lounger, and kicking her feet up quickly.

Without a second though, Satoru fell to his knees, sliding over and started massaging them.

"You'll be glad to hear that I've also been able to get some warehouse space in town to use until the home workshop space being constructed here is complete. It isn't very functional yet for prototyping, but we do already have radio equipment installed so that I can keep up with how the company is running," Satoru added.

"That is excellent, sweetie, it really is!"

"But you're tired."

"I'm sorry," Toph sighed genuinely, removing her headband from her otherwise unmanageable hair. "Growing a human inside of you is takes its toll on the body."

"Don't apologize for anything. You've done nothing wrong," Satoru wiped her bangs from her unseeing eyes as they fluttered closed and smiled.

* * *

 **Sooooo... this is an experiment. I write mostly in the LoK timeline, but thought I would try writing one of my OTPs from the ATLA timeline and the OG generation. So here is some Satoph for you. (Satoru is the guy from the Rift Comics that Toph ACTUALLY liked!)**

 **I am working on my world-building so I am going to be expanding on the ATLA world. Here, strange things happen when a bender when she gets pregnant. If you have time, please let me know what you think and if it still feels plausible in our favorite world (** **and if I should even continue the story).**

 **BTW, I just finished my last final and should have some more time over the holiday break to write. :)**


	2. A Dreadful Reunion

Toph wore a dress. Satoru barely even recognized her in light flowing silks the color of grass and daffodils with pink threading. "Is all that really necessary?" the mechanist asked his wife, pitying her for what she had to wear to see her parents.

"You don't know my parents the way I do. All you knew was the business man, Lao Beifong, not the—"

"Proud, arrogant, Earth Kingdom aristocrat Lao Beifong?" Satoru asked knowingly.

Toph sighed. "Yes… I am sorry in advance for their behavior. Just a warning they might—"

"Pick me apart, decide I am too unworthy to have wed a Beifong because I am both Fire Nation and self-made? Toph, my love, don't worry about them or me. I was the son of a Fire Nation Army General and later governor of a sizable island. I know how to navigate high society, but like you, I just chose leave that lifestyle behind. Don't worry about me; I still remember how to act. I can easily put back on that mask for you to get the chance to speak with your mother again," Satoru said.

"Thank you, Satoru," Toph said quietly, reaching out a hand for him. She was barely five months in and nearly completely blind.

* * *

The guards at the Beifong Estate waved them through the great gates with the golden seal of the flying boar painted on them without issue. The driver opened the door for Satoru first, and then for Toph. Satoru extended an arm to her like a gentleman and led her up the steps to her former home while her father watched from just inside the door.

"Last time you were here, you were a young lady. And now you're a woman grown with a husband and a home, I presume," Lao Beifong commented with a stiff nod after the guards opened the door. "Unless… you have come to return her, Mr—"

"Lee, if you don't remember. Satoru Lee," Satoru replied with a smile, nodding his head respectfully. "I worked for you briefly as your staff engineer at the first Earthen Fire Refinery. My uncle Loban bestowed his half of the company to me shortly after he became an Air Acolyte. We were business partners for nearly a decade." Satoru reminded Lao, slightly passive aggressively.

Toph squeezed his arm impatiently to get her beloved husband to shut up. "We are not here for him to return me like a piece of property. We—or I just wanted to have a conversation," Toph explained impatiently. Satoru gave her arm a light squeeze of reassurance. "With Mom."

"If you want money—" Lao began to say.

"We don't need any money, Mr. Beifong," Satoru interjected. "In fact, we've come unto rather sizable fortunes of our own in the recent years and maintain four residences all over the world, two as grand as yours here, and two even grander," Satoru boasted purposefully to exemplify his worth to the Beifong Elders.

"Impressive. So then, what could you possibly want to talk about?" Lao asked.

"I wanted to speak specifically with mother… about what it was like, when she was pregnant with me," Toph responded.

"And why would you want to do such a thing?" Lao asked blankly. If he felt anything, it didn't show.

"Because I am with child and want to know what it was like. If what is happening is considered normal…" Toph replied, her unseeing eyes focused on nothing, her feet, nearly blind.

Lao said nothing at first. He neither displayed elation or dismay at the news he was to be a grandfather. It was as if he had been shocked into silence.

"Shall I fetch your wife?" a servant, standing by asked the master of the house.

"Um… yes. Please. And show these two to the drawing room while I go… do something—" Lao said, fleeing the scene quickly.

"Come, now." Satoru whispered, gripping Toph's arm a little tighter as they followed the servant away.

"Is she okay?" Poppy asked Satoru, rushing over to inspect her daughter lovingly.

"Yes, fine, as far as I know," Satoru lied, as he helped Toph into a chair.

"She would never allow anyone to help her walk. Always insisted upon doing it alone," Poppy replied, looking at Toph longlingly. "Oh! How I have missed you so!"

"Mother, do you know how I used to walk so long ago?" Toph asked.

"With your earthbending," Poppy answered, surprising Satoru.

"Well, now that I am with child, that's been… changing. My bending is… it's weakening, and I am not sure how or why," Toph explained.

Poppy leaned forward and checked to see that they were alone before taking Toph's hands in hers. "Now, you know I was never an earth bender, but… you probably didn't know that I could feel the earth the way you do when I was pregnant with you. I didn't know what it was at the time, until you described to us that night, how you used all of those sensations to see. It was you bending through me." Poppy whispered.

"In utero?"

"Yes."

"Does this mean what is happening now will reflect what my unborn child will be? Not an earth bender?" Toph asked, for the first time in a long time, worried.

"Now, Love, there is nothing wrong with non-benders," Satoru reminded his wife gently.

She squeezed his hand. "I know, I just…"

"Always wanted a little badgermole of your own?" Satoru asked knowingly. Toph didn't respond as she held his hand for comfort.

"I wouldn't worry," Poppy said quietly, leaning forward to place a hand on her daughter's from a distance.

"Do things—return to normal— eventually" Toph asked.

"Eventually," Poppy confirmed. "How far along are you?"

Toph closed her murky eyes for a moment to remember. "Maybe a few days away from the five-month mark."

"Are you afraid at all?"

"Not now. In Republic City, I was so worried the triads would find out about this weakened—almost cripled state that I'm in. But here, where the crime is practically nonexistent, I don't think so," Toph replied, squeezing Satoru's hand. He was the rock she slept on, the anchor that steadied her in the storm, the cables that kept her feet fixed to the floor. He was her everything.

"You should be, _especially_ if the child is anything like you," Lao said, appearing in the doorway.

"Lao!" Poppy scolded him.

"You dare come back to this house after marrying the _help_?"

"I beg your pardon, Sir!" Satoru yelled. "I was an inventor and an engineer. Not a manservant or slave if you're worried about a lower class besmirching your good name!"

"It's not your class I take issue with!"

"Then what?"

"Your blood! Ashmaker!"

Just then the fire in the fireplace, the flame on the wick of the candle on the table, the flares emanating from the torch on the wall, every flame in the room blazed larger, louder, and hotter. "SHUT UP! SHUT UP ALL OF YOU!" Toph yelled, standing up. "If you hated Fire Nation sooo fucking much, you should have never chosen Loban to be your business partner! If you never started Earthen Fire with him, he would have never angered General Old Iron—Aang would have never needed to come fix all of your damn problems, and I would have never met Satoru!" Toph yelled. With every wave of a hand, another flame lashed out.

"Toph!" Satoru grabbed her shoulders. "Toph, calm—down—take a breath—"

"I don't need to—unhand me!"

"Toph!"

"WHAT?!" Toph yelled. Her skin temperature surged, forcing Satoru to let go, burned.

He pulled out his heat resistant gloves he wore when using a blow torch and grabbed her wrist.

"Why are you wearing—"

"We need to go," he decided.

"But I'm not through with my Father!"

"Toph, you're blind and now burning. Let yourself go anymore and this place may just go up in flames," Satoru said.

"What do you mean?" Toph asked, turning her head back and forth, confused, seeing and feeling nothing, trapped in this dark, motionless world. Satoru guided her hand to the candle on the table.

The light of a candle shouldn't burn this hot or this high," he said holding her hand nearby it so she could feel its temperature reaching up and out.

"You've tainted my daughter with the seed of a dragon!"

"You've tainted the world with your close-mindedness and racial discrimination!" Satoru refuted. "Toph, we should go." He ushered his wife out of her childhood home and back to the car.

"The fire was me?" Toph asked once in the car.

"You or—our child through you," Satoru said, placing his hand on Toph's small mound that only barely showed through her gown.

"Fuck!" Toph cursed. "Why haven't we heard of something like this until now?"

"Well, considering you were a girl of rather—gentle birth, I can't imagine your parents ever teaching you much about sex or its consequences. And from what I know, you never went back to school after the age of twelve," Satoru suggested.

"Sorry for prioritizing helping my friends with the peace restoration movement after a hundred-year-war."

"I wasn't judging!"

"Well what's your excuse then? From what I know, you an educated lad who lived under your relatively respectable parents until you were seventeen when your father joined the New Ozai society. Why haven't you heard about a thing like this?"

"I was told my obligations ended where the cock met the cunt. All that followed was the woman's responsibility."

"Lovely!" Toph scoffed, rolling her eyes. "So, I'm on my own trying to figure this out?"

"No. Like I told you before we went to your parents' house, I left that world, that society behind. We're in this together. Since you can't read, I will. We'll find out what all this means. I promise!"

* * *

 ** _A/N This is all part of my rather... extensive AU. Just a part of the Avatar world Timeline that I don't usually touch. Hope you find this story interesting (not sure if it can be enjoyable, but I will try!)(Also, I try to write this carefully, but there may still be some mistakes as I am editing it all myself and don't have a beta for this project... seeing if I can stand alone :)) All feedback is greatly appreciated! Good, bad, constructive, useless, EVERYTHING *inserts heart*._**


	3. Good Luck, Satoru

**One Month Later**

 **Royal Palace, Fire Nation Capital, The Fire Lady's Study**

The Fire Lady sat at her desk, taking a break from reviewing the the education budget reports to read a letter from a friend of a friend when her door opened.

"Sage Kuro," the Fire Lady addressed the man, setting down her letter.

"Your Highness," Fire Sage Kuro said with a deep bow.

"Are you incapable of knocking before entering, or should have your hands replaced with iron rings to remind you," Mai asked sternly.

"Forgive me, I believed the matter was too urgent to warrant knocking."

"Unless you have received notice that my husband has been found dead in an alley, it can wait long enough for you to knock."

"Forgive me, your Highness."

"What do you need?" Mai demanded.

"The Sages have convened. They asked that I approach you as their representative."

"Regarding…"

"It has been over six months since Yasu's death…" the sage said, mentioning the name of the third stillborn child of the Fire Lord and his Lady.

Mai's eyes narrowed dangerously as a blade slipped from her sleeve into her hand under the desk. "You don't need to remind me," she growled, her voice low.

"As much as we appreciate your efforts in alleviating the Fire Lord of some of his political duties in your spare time, we felt we must remind you that as the Fire Lady your primary purpose is to bring forth an heir to the throne."

Mai remained stoic, "You're a fool for thinking I need reminding."

"Your moon cycle ends next week. If you still bleed, you will be replaced with someone we believe… more capable of fulfilling that primary duty of the Fire Lady."

Mai's heartbeat quickened in anger, but her face showed nothing. "If you think my husband will consent to having me replaced, you're sorely mistaken," she informed the Sage, lowering her gaze to her abdomen.

"He won't have a choice if you're no longer living," Sage Kuro

Mai's eyes shot up in surprise. She had suspected they would become more daring the more time passed but didn't think they were brave enough to speak of their plans to her face. "What you're suggesting is treason!"

"We have spoken with the courts. There is no higher treason than conspiring against Sozin's Dynasty. If you are found incapable of giving his Majesty an heir, you will be executed for wasting _his_ time and the states resources on your own upkeep."

Mai's lip twitched, just barely, managing to save face. "Is that all you wished to tell me, Sage Kuro?"

"Yes, your Highness."

"Then leave my presence." Mai ordered. "And—send in Jin!"

"Yes, your Higness."

Mai had to wait only a minute for her secretary to come. "Prepare a radio for me; I need to make a call."

"To where, your Highness?" the secretary asked.

"A house in Gaoling—Earth Kingdom. Here is the routing number."

"May I ask why, your Highness? It is an unusual call at this time of year."

 _Spirits! They have her spying on me too!_ Mai mentally cursed. "I can't stay here a moment longer. Zuko will understand."

"His Lordship?"

"No, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street—of course his Lordship!" Mai snapped.

"Forgive me, your Highness!" the secretary exclaimed, hurrying to ready the telegram.

That night, once they were surely alone, Zuko spoke. "Are you sure I can't convince you to change your mind about leaving? I can postpone my trips, stay here to protect you from everything?"

"It would only make me more of a traitor for wasting your time and state resources if this one doesn't pull through," Mai replied with a hand on her lower abdomen. Zuko rested his over hers, feeling the familiar warmth and firmness of his wife's pregnant body. "I have to go before they kill me… and your child." Mai whispered, placing his hand on her lower abdomen.

"Spirits! I'm so sorry!" Zuko exclaimed, resting his head on her chest, relishing the scent of her flesh for the last time for a while.

"Don't be. They just want what's best for our country, just like we do."

"But the fact that they would even suggest replacing you—"

"It—may be necessary," Mai whispered, allowing a rare tear to fall only in the presence of her beloved husband.

"Don't speak that way. We will get through this!"

"I hope so," Mai replied.

* * *

 **2 Months Later**

 **Earthen Fire Estate—Gaoling, Earth Kingdom**

Mai arrived by taxi with only two bags to her name and a full arsenal of blades hidden on her person. For some reason, she expected a hut or cottage of sorts, something homey perhaps with a garden out front or a deck where she could have tea with her old acquaintances. What she founud instead was a massive limestone wall that stood about twenty feet high and perhaps three feet wide. The main gate had the Earthen Fire Company Logo embezzeled in it in solid gold with ruby and emerald stones set in the great dragon head-shaped knockers with the body of a flying boar. She never thought of Toph or Satoru as very eccentric people, but in their defense, there wasn't much else to do in Gaoling other than gardening and decorating apparently.

"Name?" the guard asked.

"Mai Kawasuka Hatsuharu, Lady of the Oshuro Estate in Ruyiao Jing, Fire Nation." Mai answered.

"Master Lee welcomes you," the guard said, motioning for the gatekeepers to open the gate. Beyond the great walls, gardens sprawled with acres of floral gardens with intermittent vegetable patches and fruit trees. Workers everywhere meticulously groomed every single plant down to even the most insignificant leaf.

"Mai!" Satoru called, running out of the house, taking her bags from the attendants. "How was the journey? I am so sorry it took so long!"

"Oh no worries. The fault is mine. I had to delay my departure."

"Why?"

"We needed them to know I was pregnant before leaving. If I left after missing my first moon, they might assume the incident as coincidence and later accuse me of returning with a bastard instead of a prince," Mai answered with a tired sigh and a heavy gaze.

"That's ridiculous for them to even think the Honorable Fire Lord would allow his wife to engage in adultery!"

"They don't have anything against Zuko. It is all on me. So, we waited. Now I'm three months in and—since they're relatively certain the baby is his, so Zuko helped me leave."

"Well," Satoru exclaimed. "The outer walls are a recent addition, as are the hundred and sixty senturies guarding it at all times. I wanted to ensure I had the highest security for my Fire Lady and Chief of Police for the occasions when I have to return to Republic City. It's not often… and never for long… but— does happen."

Mai smiled, grateful for his care. "That really wasn't necessary, but I appreciate the gesture."

Mai followed Satoru through the threshold of his new estate to find guards posted just inside and outside the front door and a servant waiting. "These to Lady Mai's room, please." He asked, handing off her bags.

"Please, can they just call me Mai?" Mai asked.

"It is not very traditional, but I guess, neither are we are after everything," Satoru smiled offered his hand. "Toph should be still in the drawing room."

They found her there, laying on her back with her filthy feet up on a brand new deep red velvet couch, hands folded over her her rounding belly, eyes closed.

"At least I can still hear another soul breathing," the blind earthbender mused quietly.

Mai smiled and rushed over as Toph sat up on the couch. "Toph!"

"Lady Mai," Toph responded trying to stand, finding her feet slowly.

"Please, just Mai," Mai insisted, urging her to sit back down

"I'd bow, but—"

Mai frowned. "There's no need for all that, really. I should be bowing to you since you're the Lady of the house!"

"Bah!" Toph threw her head back. "Lady my ass! I'm not much more than a garden waste disposal at this point. The little lad can't keep down any meat. If I weren't firebending, I'd think he were an airbender or something."

Mai smiled genuinely for the first time in what felt like years as she held Toph's hands.

Toph felt Mai's belly as well and smiled. "Aren't you in for a fun few months, Satoru?" Toph laughed. "Now that you have two temperamental firebending ladies under your charge."

Satoru laughed where he stood leaning against the doorway with his arms folded but perfectly at ease. "It will be worth it, I'm sure."

Toph lowered her head and squeezed Mai's hands. "Soh how are you?"

"Sill breathing, much to the Fire Sages' dismay," Mai replied.

"Has it gotten that bad already?"

"I understand their concerns. After three stillbirths and two miscarriages in less than five years… everyone was getting worried."

"I know. But it isn't something you could control. You could both be infertile, spirits forbid, and for Oma's sake, their constant pressure can't be helping."

Mai squeezed Toph's hands back for comfort. "Sometimes, I wonder—if they had a part to play in our misfortunes."

"What makes you think that?"

"Recently Kuro paid me a visit threatening to accuse me of treason and conspiracy against Sozin's legacy before the Grand Council. When I reminded him that Zuko would never allow such a thing to happen, they basically said he couldn't protest my replacement if I were dead."

"Spirits! Do you really think they have the spine to to attempt anything?"

"I am certain of it. Shortly after receiving Kuro's threat, Ursa taught me to identify several of the most common poisons that are slipped into food and drink. They tried to kill me thrice back at the palace and twice on my way here."

"Flaming shits!" Satoru breathed from the doorway.

"They hate me for redesigning the role of the Fire Lady, and for reducing _their_ influence on the Fire Lord, and changing things. They claim spiritual enlightenment, but they're still only men—"

"Hey!" Satoru smirked, feigning offense. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Only that hey're the same as us, no less impulsive or impressionable by greed and lust and fear. It was not meant as a slight to your species, Satoru. I promise," Mai said with a smirk.

"Good!"

Mai turned back to Toph. "But enough about all that. How are you? Are you scared about anything since it is your first time?"

"Terrified. But feeling better now that we're away from where the worst of society and where crimes are the most abundant and glad nobody knows about our babies."

"And how is your vision faring these days?"

"The fuzziness is… has been the same for a few weeks. But my distance and depth perception is nearly gone completely. Based on what Satoru's told me, I think the closest comparison would be to how you seeing people look at a painting on a piece of parchment or something."

"And are you okay with that?"

"Eh," Toph shrugged. "My mother tells me it is only temporary. She says she was able to feel the vibrations in the earth during her pregnancy with me and that she lost it immediately after birthing."

"So that means your child won't be a little badgermole, but a—"

"Dragon—just like yours," Satoru aswered.

"You were firebending too?" Toph asked excitedly.

"My child. When I found the poison in that first soup. It was like he could feel my anger when I saw that unfamiliar kitchen hand fleeing the scene."

"Did he live—the kitchen hand— after you burned him?"

"Barely."

* * *

 **So Fire Lady Mai has arrived at the Earthen Fire Estate in Gaoling that Satoru and Toph are commissioning :)**

 **I know it is very dialogue heavy, but might be just because I imagine the stories as episodes, and the scenes are short. idk :)**

 **As always, all feedback is greatly appreciated! *inserts hearts* thanks for reading!**


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